Chapter 40: Ready Perfectly
“We’re looking to upgrade our equipment,” I replied evenly, trying not to be fazed by the intensity of his gaze.
“Hmph.” He crossed his arms. “Let me see what you’ve got, and I’ll tell you what I can do. But don’t come cryin’ if the job’s too much for your wallet. Good steel doesn’t come cheap.”
Despite his harsh tone, there was a glint of pride in his eyes—a craftsman who took his work seriously. That was a good sign. I gestured to Michelle and Boris, and we began unloading our gear on the nearby workbench, including the monster parts and materials we had acquired during the third scenario. Among them were fangs, pelts, claws, and most notably, dozens of black scales from the bear we defeated.
There were more inside our inventory, but we hadn’t had the chance to remove them from the corpses. In fact, most of these materials that were brought out earlier were already separated or automatically separated by the System. The rest had to be separated manually, though.
“Oh? What’s this?” The blacksmith picked up the thick, jagged scales. He turned it over in his calloused hands, inspecting its surface and thickness. “Tough and durable. Reinforced with a layer of natural mana. I can work this into armor—damn good armor, in fact.”
His expression became less gruff and more intrigued as he asked, “You managed to kill the beast this came from?”
Boris grinned. “With my bare hands, in my case.”
“Hah! No wonder it’s in good condition.” The blacksmith placed the scale down with a nod. “With enough of this and some silver alloy, I can craft a set of reinforced light armor. Light and flexible enough for quick movement but also tough enough to take a hit. It should be far better than what all of you are wearing now, though,” he looked at Boris, “this man is topless to begin with.”
So, a light scale armor? I thought.
“Can you make something even lighter? And maybe a small shield out of it?”
“Somethin’ lighter? That’s easy. And a shield, eh?” He stroked his beard thoughtfully. “Yeah, I can do that. I can shape the scales into a curved buckler or a reinforced round shield. It’ll cost a bit more, though, but I guarantee the quality.”
“Sounds perfect,” I replied. “Please make it compact and sturdy. I’ll be using it a lot.”
“Also…” I took out the alpha wolf’s corpse. “The leather from this one should carry some magical properties. If you combine it with the black scale, it might produce something even better. But even on its own, it should be solid.”
“Hmm?” He leaned in, inspecting the corpse. “Not bad at all. This one’s got wind affinity. The leather’s tough and light—ideal for crafting something flexible. Should suit the missy over there nicely.”
I exchanged a glance with Michelle, who perked up at the suggestion, her eyes lighting up with anticipation.
“How much?” I asked.
He scratched at his beard again. “I don’t do half-measures. I’ll be making premium stuff here—no skimping on materials or effort. It’s gonna cost you five hundred soul coins apiece. Pay upfront. Give me two days.”
Ugh. That’s expensive.
I checked the total amount of soul coins that I had.
Soul Coins: 1,670
Spending five hundred soul coins shouldn’t be a problem here. Furthermore, despite having the Negotiation skill, I had a hunch that trying to haggle with this kind of craftsman would only get us tossed out of the smithy.
“Fair enough for me,” I said after a moment of consideration. “How about you, Michelle?”
“It’s fine by me, too,” she replied with a nod, clearly still excited about the armor.
I turned to Boris. “Are you sure you don’t want anything crafted?”
“Gahaha. Just give me a cape made from that bear’s fur!” he boomed with a wide grin.
I could imagine a bare-chested and bald late middle-aged man charging into battle wearing nothing but rugged pants and a dramatic animal-skin cape flapping behind him. A walking war cry. What a combo it would be.
The blacksmith chuckled. “Leave it to me.”
Afterward, I asked the blacksmith to repair our weapons, which cost me a total of one hundred soul coins for my own gear. Thankfully, he was such a professional that the repair took less than an hour to complete.
With everything done, we returned to the inn to rest for the day.
As a tribute to the Goddess of Imagination, Istellia, 100 Soul Coins have been deducted from your balance.
***
We spent the next day training just like before—only this time, we pushed ourselves even harder. I made noticeable progress with my proficiency at using the shield, growing more comfortable with integrating it into my combat rhythm. However, I still couldn’t manage to raise either Basic Swordsmanship or Spearmanship to the Intermediate level. It seemed that such a leap required either a true life-or-death breakthrough… or simply wasting plausibility to possess Alric again. Neither option was something that I was keen about.
That said, my stats had improved significantly, thanks in no small part to the elixir. I had brewed only five, and after giving three away—to Boris and Michelle—I was now completely out. Boris, true to form, had declined a second dose, claiming he hadn’t yet fully utilized the first. So, I handed the spare one to Michelle instead after consuming another one myself before the training today.
The day after that, we stood once more at the edge of the Rift of Scenarios after getting our new equipment from the smithy earlier in the morning.
Unlike last time, we didn’t feel rushed. With upgraded equipment, sharpened skills, and growing synergy between the three of us, I had every reason to feel confident. Michelle now wore her custom-forged black leather-scale armor—a flexible blend of black scale and wind-touched hide that hugged her form without restricting movement. Her bow and axe gleamed beneath the morning sun, ready for battle. Boris, meanwhile, proudly draped the black bear pelt over his shoulders like a chieftain’s mantle, with the bear’s head’s pelt resting on his shoulder. His fists were still his primary weapon, but I had no doubt they were even deadlier now.
As for me, a curved buckler now rested against my left arm—compact, reinforced, and even bearing traces of mana.
Armored Scaled Buckler
Grade: Rare
Type: Shield
A lightweight shield forged from steel and the jagged scales of an Armored Black Bear, expertly crafted by a seasoned blacksmith. Despite its small size, it’s capable of withstanding devastating strikes and deflecting incoming projectiles with ease.
- Durability: 75/75
- Grants +5 Strength
- Automatically blocks one fatal attack (beneath Daleth-rank) without harming the wearer.
Predator’s Scaled Hide
Grade: Rare
Type: Light Armor
A custom-forged armor made from the scales of an Armored Black Bear and the toughened leather of an Alpha Gale Wolf. It offers natural protection without slowing the wearer down, and its durable and light material makes it ideal for close-quarters combatants who rely on speed and survivability.
- Durability: 60/60
- Grants +3 Strength, +3 Stamina, and +2 Dexterity
- Reflects 20% of physical damage taken back to the attacker.
Clearly, all three of us had taken a hit to our soul coin balances, but it was worth every coin. Rare-grade equipment like this would fetch a much higher price on the market than the crafting fee alone—each piece was easily worth over a thousand soul coins. For most craftsmen, the rare grade was the ceiling of what they could produce, even with top-tier materials.
Aside from this, my skills proficiency as well as my stats had improved quite considerably over the past couple of days.
Maximillian Anderson Lv. 14/40 (EXP 126/660)
Rank: Bet [2]
Patron God: Istellia (Goddess of Imagination)
Class: Paradox Incarnate
Title: Foul Play (2)
Status: Normal
Strength: 82 + 10 | Dexterity: 64 + 12 | Stamina: 62 + 5
Mind: 49 | Magic Power: 45 | Luck: 54
Plausibility: 109
Free Attributes: 141
Signature Skill(s): [@!$# Creation], [Fabled Vessel], [Grant Plausibility], [Scenario Manipulation]
Skill(s): [Basic Alchemy Lv.4], [Basic Hand-to-Hand Combat Lv.3], [Basic Shield Mastery Lv.3], [Basic Spearmanship Lv.10], [Basic Swordsmanship Lv.10], [Desperate Willpower Lv.5], [Fast Reading Lv.2], [Heavy Slash Lv.2], [Heavy Stab Lv.2], [Inventory], [Mana Sense Lv.1], [Mental Tolerance Lv.4], [Negotiation Lv.4], [Night Vision], [Pain Tolerance Lv.4], [Projectile Defense Lv.1], [Predator’s Step Lv.1], [Wind Rush Lv.1]
As we lined up to get our turn, Michelle suddenly raised a question.
“Maxim, I’ve always wondered.”
“What is it?”
“There are three alcoves in this place, but we’ve only gone into the right one, which is the Rift of Scenarios. What about the other two?” She looked at me, genuinely curious.
By now, both Boris and Michelle understood that I possessed knowledge far beyond what any ordinary person should have. Still, they were tactful enough not to press me on where it came from. It made sense—after all, I’d been helping them this whole time, so why risk upsetting a beneficial arrangement?
Of course, it was also possible they hadn’t thought that deeply about it and were simply kind by nature, but that would be too optimistic to believe.
“Well, I’m not too sure about the middle, largest one,” I said, lying through my teeth. “But the one on the left is called the Rift of Dungeons. You can enter it as soon as you become a Bet-rank divine warrior, but unless you have a death wish, it’s better to wait until you reach Gimmel rank.”
This was because the Rift of Dungeons connected to many dangerous and unexplored regions. No one knew exactly what might be lurking inside. Unlike the scenarios, there were no restrictions on the strength of enemies, which meant terrifying monsters, well beyond a divine warrior’s capabilities, could show up even in seemingly calm areas.
But for me, it was actually a promising place to harvest plausibility. There was one reason for this: Unlike the scenarios, which reset after completion and left no lasting changes, dungeons were persistent. You could go in and out freely without needing to meet any conditions, and the state of the dungeon would remain exactly as you left it. Of course, this also meant that other people could disturb you inside the dungeon, but still.
“Mm, it’s decided. Once we’ve advanced to Gimmel rank, we’re entering the Rift of Dungeons,” I murmured to myself.
Finally, it was our turn to enter the Rift of Scenarios. The line, to begin with, wasn’t long—most of the other divine warriors were still recovering from earlier runs or were simply too cautious to dive back in so soon.
“The fourth scenario… Let’s see what it has in store for us,” I mused.
“Gahaha! I’m itching for a real fight,” Boris said, practically vibrating with excitement.
“Hopefully, it’ll go smoother this time,” Michelle added.
“Welcome, divine warriors. Do you wish to challenge the fourth scenario?” Elysia greeted us once again, her voice as calm and formal as ever.
“We do,” I replied.
“Very well. Then please step forward into the portal,” she said, gesturing gracefully as a dark portal shimmered into existence.
Without hesitation, the three of us stepped through. That now-familiar sensation of dislocation pulled at my body before my feet touched solid ground again—grassy, slightly damp earth beneath us. The scent of moss and pine filled my lungs, and a dense forest stretched out before us in all directions.
But before we could even take in our surroundings, a sudden rustle came from the underbrush—and several monsters emerged, their shining green eyes locked onto us with clear hostility.